Technical Field
The present invention is related to a closed litter box for pets.
Description of the Related Art
As it is known, for hygienic collection of droppings of domestic animals, usually cats, trays containing an absorbent granular material commonly called litter are generally used.
Traditional containers for litter are normally constituted by a tray having at the bottom a layer of granular material intended to absorb and incorporate the pet excrement. This granular material, usually sand or clay, should be regularly replaced with clean granular material.
The containers mainly used for this purpose are trays or boxes that can be easily emptied, cleaned and filled with clean granular material.
It is also well known that, especially when the litter must be arranged inside a domestic environment it is useful that the structure of the container for the litter is closed, so as not to disperse unpleasant odors or the granular material contained in it.
Since the hygienic aspect becomes particularly important when these containers are arranged within houses or apartments, litter boxes that have a substantially closed structure, formed by a lower part intended to contain the granular material and by a removable cover, have been developed.
As it is also known, there are different types of litter boxes for pets, for example cats, that can be moved through the use of a suitable handle integrated in the litter box.
For example, the patent application US 2008/0022938 describes a portable litter box comprising a bottom portion mounted on a pair of wheels and an upper portion which can be fixed to the lower one, provided with a pivoting door to allow the input and the output of the animal, and an extensible handle hinged to the litter box structure to facilitate transportation and lockable in the upper portion when not used.
Even the patent application US 2009/00272327 describes a litter box for cats with a base, a removable lid, a pivoting door and a handle hinged on the lid.
It is also known that, for the use and the regular cleaning of the litter, accessories such as a shovel and the bags for the collection of excrement are necessary.
This necessity implies problems of bulk and of practicality, but also hygienic problems because each of these cleaning devices, the litter box, the shovel and the bags, inevitably coming into contact with the excrement, should be maintained as much as possible isolated to avoid the risk of contamination of other household items.
As described in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,794,566, the known litter boxes may include shovels dedicated to the cleaning of the same litter, and in particular of its lower portion.
However, not all the known litter boxes are bulky and full of accessories included in the litter boxes which encumbers its structure and increase the cost.